Maine CDC Breast and Cervical Health Program: An Important Resource for Maine Women

The
Affordable Care Act (ACA) seeks to create greater access to health care
by getting more people covered by insurance. For women who have
purchased coverage on the Marketplace or other privately purchased
plans, but continue to be burdened by premiums, deductibles and co-pays
that prevent them from receiving breast cancer screening services, the
Maine CDC Breast
and Cervical Health Program (MBCHP) can be a valuable
resource for women needing breast and/or cervical cancer screening and
follow-up services.

Program eligibility for MBCHP:

Women age 40 to 64, with the following exceptions:

Women 35-39 who have seen a doctor and need follow-up tests for a possible breast
or cervical cancer;

Women 35-39 who have not had a Pap test in 5 or more years.

Maine resident (or New Hampshire resident located within 15 miles of the Maine
state border), and;

Household income less than or equal to 250% of the current Federal Poverty Level
(FPL), and;

Have no health insurance, or health insurance with high co-pays, deductibles or
premiums;

Women receiving MaineCare or Medicare Part B are not
eligible for MBCHP.

MBCHP enrollment is conducted over the phone
in minutes:

call 1-800-350-5180; press 1

Important information for healthcare professionals:Maine’s
primary care providers are encouraged to continue referring women to
MBCHP for screening and follow-up services for abnormal screening
results. It is important to remember that even with the changes in
health insurance laws and coverage, MBCHP is available to assist
eligible women to gain access to needed breast and/or cervical cancer
screening and follow-up services. Timely follow-up to abnormal screening
results is critical to the early detection and treatment of cancer and
pre-cancerous lesions.

Uninsured women diagnosed with breast
or cervical cancer or undergoing treatment for breast or cervical
cancer may qualify for MaineCare [Maine Medicaid Program] under the
Maine Treatment Act. Call the MBCHP Case Manager/Patient Navigator
to determine if your patient qualifies for treatment coverage
[1-800-350-5180, Press 1 and ask for the Case Manager].

AmazonSmile is
a simple and automatic
way for you to support Maine Breast Cancer Coalition every time you shop, at no
cost to you.

How does it work?When you shop at smile.amazon.com,
you’ll find the same shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus
that the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price from
your eligible AmazonSmile purchases.

How do I select Maine Breast Cancer
Coalition to support when shopping on AmazonSmile?Click on the
"Get started" button below.

I already have an Amazon account. Do I
need to open a new account?No. If you already have an Amazon.com
account, you will use the same account on AmazonSmile.

"The majority of women who get breast cancer have none of the known
clinical risk factors. This means we don’t know what causes breast
cancer or how to prevent it.

The HOW Study is a first-of-its-kind
international online study for women and men with and without a history
of breast cancer. We will collect information about your health, your
job, your diet, and your family history, among other topics that can
help us get a better understanding of breast cancer and its potential
causes.

The HOW Study will track hundreds of thousands of women (and men) over
time to learn what causes breast cancer, and how to prevent it. HOW
will also study long-term breast cancer survivors in order to get a
better understanding of how they are beating the odds. This is the first
time a study of this size and magnitude is collecting data entirely
online. We are excited by this approach because it will allow us to ask
every question any of us (including you) ever wanted answered. We
believe this is the first study that will allow the participants to
submit questions they want studied, and we are eager to hear what you
want us to do!

Once you sign up to become a member of the HOW Study, you
will receive
periodic questionnaires that will ask questions about different health
and exposure topics. Each new questionnaire will be released in a "Call
to Action" email and will address a specific topic, such as reproductive
health, cancer history (for those with breast cancer), environmental
exposures, and much, much more. Each questionnaire should take about
60-90 minutes to fill out, and you will get a new one every three to
four months.

This is a partnership, and we need you for the long haul. The
more questionnaires you fill out, the more information we will have that
can help us have a better understanding of why women get breast cancer."

We need your help!Show
your support and join us
in our efforts. Annual memberships supply critical funding for our volunteer-based
non-profit
organization’s general operating costs and make it possible for us to
continue our important work. Memberships are available in various levels for
both
individuals and businesses.